Australian soccer star Sam Kerr was found not guilty of racially aggravated assault after a trial in which she admitted to making abusive remarks towards a British police officer. The case sparked a debate about free speech, race, and women's safety.
At face value, it seemed relatively cut and dry. No matter how many viewed it as trivial, Sam Kerr had been captured on camera saying what she said, and she couldn’t dispute it.
It would prove so. As the trial progressed through six days, more details emerged, and the picture became more complex. A chaotic taxi ride. A smashed window. A spew. A dodged fare. An angry driver. An allegation of kidnap. The fear of murder and rape. “Gaslighting” from police.On social media and in cafes, many thought it a storm in a teacup. But in the court, with two of Britain’s top-flight barristers, it was deadly serious.
Lovell called Kerr “little missy” and said: “Do you think a taxi driver that was going to rape and kill you would drive you to a police station? No.” After this, she called him “sick” and a “white privileged man”. On the stand, Kerr’s voice was quiet and shy. On several occasions, she was asked to speak up. “I’m really trying,” Kerr said at one point. She said she’d grown up in a state where there was a serial killer who was thought to have been a taxi driver.Somewhat characteristically, Kerr was stoic as the not-guilty verdict was read out. She’d told the court last week she was the more masculine of the two in her relationship. The protector.
Kerr offered Forbes a thumbs up: “You have done amazing; I can’t thank you enough.” Then, jokingly, she told the dock officer, “Hope to never see you again”, as she left the courtroom. She then embraced her brother in a way only siblings can. The relief was real. “It does not carry the hurt and injustice of years, decades and centuries of personal and collective experience of prejudice,” he added. “ the fact remains that in the heat of the moment, this insult was delivered in reference to race, and that is what the law prohibits.”Judge Peter Lodder wasn’t all that convinced by Kerr’s version of events either.
Law Sam Kerr Racially Aggravated Assault Trial Free Speech Race Women's Safety
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